In many engineering companies, the first real engineering decision is not made with CAD; it is made with an Excel spreadsheet or a datasheet. Or just through vendor evaluations that are distributed via email.
However, nearly all Engineering Data Management systems have been designed by assuming CAD is the beginning of Engineering. This disconnect creates inefficiencies for organizations from a time, cost, and intelligence standpoint.
The Legacy of CAD-Centric PDM/PLM
For many years, CAD-supported data management platforms like SolidWorks PDM or Teamcenter have been used to help engineers maintain their engineering data. They have organized drawings, tracked revisions, and assisted teams with data management for CAD files in an orderly and efficient manner.
However, these systems were created at a time when most engineering outputs consisted only of drawings, whereas today engineering encompasses far more than geometry. Engineering today deals with data, decision-making, and cross-functional teamwork, before any drawing has been created.
Engineering Work Begins Before CAD
In some industries, such as Water, EPC, or Industrial Equipment Manufacturing, Engineering has begun, at least in some cases, before any CAD Models are created.
Within EPC Projects, there is a lot that needs to be accomplished as part of pre-manufacturing and pre-installation, including but not limited to the following:
- Databases (equipment)
- Definitions of pumps, valves, or piping
- Process Parameters or Calculations
- Vendor evaluation
- Compliance & design checklists
This early-stage work defines the project but it lives outside PDM/PLM systems. Instead, it is scattered across Excel files, PDFs, emails, and personal folders.
The Excel Dependency Problem
Excel has established itself as the standard application used in early engineering because of its familiarity and flexibility. Engineers use it in a variety of contexts, e.g., for:
- Data sheets
- Math or engineering calculations
- Equipment selection
- Design and quality assurance checklists
However, Excel was never designed to manage “intelligent” engineering;
- Data is fragmented across multiple files.
- There are no relationships among parts.
- There is no validation or standardization.
- There is no intelligent search or reuse.
- There is a great deal of redundancy and contradiction across the data contained within Excel.
Although Excel contains data, it does not know how to interpret that data.
When engineering data cannot be understood, it cannot be reused.
A Real-World Breakdown in Engineering Flow
Take a water treatment project, for example:
The engineer picks their pump through an Excel. And the valve and piping information is on a different sheet to creation of materials for procurement in an ERP. CAD models will then be created and, in turn, manually moved from the relevant CAD to ERP.
The result? There are duplicate materials in the ERP, mismatched data between Excel, CAD, and ERP, an inability to trace back to any engineering decision, and continued rework throughout the project lifecycle.
This is not the fault of tooling or a tooling issue; there’s just not enough System Layer to make this happen.
Why Traditional PDM/PLM Falls Short
- CAD-Centric from Beginning to End
Management of files and drawings is the primary purpose of PDM and PLM systems, while they do not manage the structure of engineering data, including specification and decision-making.
- The Start of Engineering Versus CAD
When 60 to 80 percent of engineering occurs before using CAD, and creating an unmanaged data set of those previous processes occurs.
- Excel Continues to Rule Pre-Engineering
Access to information related to the datasheets, calculations, and checklists was kept in separate systems without being part of an integrated PDM or PLM.
- Limited Use Across Functional Groups
Sales, procurement, and services groups tend to stay away from using a PDM/PLM because they are large, CAD-centric, and complex.
- Limited Ability to Search or Reuse Knowledge
The ability to search for engineering information based on performance or constraints has very few options beyond using a filename.
How to Address the Problem of the Missing Link: Pre-ERP Engineering Layer
To solve the problem caused by the lack of an integrated data source for engineering activities, a new Pre-ERP Engineering Layer has been proposed.
The Pre-ERP Engineering Layer captures and structures engineering data (including specifications, design decisions, and the relationships among the components) before that data flows into a CAD or ERP system, thereby establishing a single source of truth for engineering information.
The Pre-ERP Engineering Layer allows engineers to manage data on engineering intelligence rather than managing data. For example, all of the design data is linked, thus creating an “engineered solution” of integrated engineering data instead of project-based design data.
IEHUB is Designed to Enable Intelligent Engineering
IEHUB has been developed for this pre-engineering phase. It transforms scattered spreadsheets and documents into structured, connected engineering data that flows cleanly into CAD and ERP systems.
With IEHUB,
- Engineering data becomes well-structured with standard formats to ensure the ability to share data.
- Components and systems are properly connected so that they function as a single unit.
- Engineering decisions are correctly tracked for future reference.
- Engineering data can be reused on future engineering projects.
- The ERP systems will receive clean (non-contaminated) and validated engineering data.
IEHUB does not replace CAD or ERP but rather acts as an enhancement to both of those systems.
Engineering Data Flow Design
Current State:
Excel → CAD → PDM/PLM → ERP
All inputs/outputs of this process are disparate and have a high likelihood of inaccuracies in the data.
Proposed State:
IEHUB → CAD → ERP
An integrated, unified, and intelligent process
Conclusion:
PDM and PLM are great systems for solving yesterday’s challenge of managing CAD files, the current challenge is how to manage the intelligence created through engineering throughout the entire product lifecycle.
This requires:
- Structured data
- Interconnected systems
- Intelligent search capabilities
- Cross-functional access
Engineering no longer starts with CAD; therefore, we should not be building our systems in that manner either.
Build a Smarter Engineering Foundation
If your teams still depend on Excel before CAD, it’s time to move forward.
Discover how IEHUB.AI works as a Pre-ERP Engineering Layer capturing early-stage engineering data, reducing rework, and connecting seamlessly with CAD and ERP.
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Palanivel Muthusamy is a seasoned expert in the Engineering, CAD, CAE, PLM, and PDM domains, boasting over 20 years of experience in project and product engineering within industrial companies. He holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Engineering, complemented by numerous certifications. Palanivel is highly proficient in engineering processes, including engineering change orders, notices, and quality processes, bringing a wealth of knowledge and hands-on expertise to the field.
